Heart of West Michigan United Way sets goal of decreasing dropout rate 50 percent by 2020

GRAND RAPIDS, MI – For 20 minutes every day, AmeriCorps tutor Denielle Riley and second-grader Timothy Cross work one-on-one at Godwin Heights West Elementary to build his phonics and fluency skills, so he can become a successful reader and stay on track to graduate high school.

A child who isn't proficient in reading by third grade is four times more likely to drop out of high school than a proficient reader, according to a 2011 report by the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Last year, nearly 2,000 Kent County high school students dropped out before graduating with their class.

The Heart of Michigan United Way has set a goal of decreasing Kent County’s high school dropout rate 50 percent by 2020. Over the years, the agency has been working aggressively on many fronts with its partners to improve student achievement, including piloting the childhood literacy initiative this year at Godwin Heights, Cedar Springs, and Godfrey-Lee school districts through its Schools of Hope Americorps Program.

Tony Campbell, vice president of community impact-education for United Way, said the agency believes cutting the county’s dropout rate in half is a bold but achievable goal that can make a difference in this community.

“We were really interested in doing something that would have a direct impact on stabilizing families and improving the economy in Kent County,” said Campbell about helping more students graduate college and career ready. “If we don’t have an educated workforce, we are not going to keep or attract businesses.”

“A high school diploma is the very least ticket you can purchase on the road to success.”

He said this has been a planning year with full implementation in 2013 of a three-prong plan to tackle the dropout: public policy, volunteerism and service and allocating resources for programs and initiatives.

“We are in the process of selecting platforms for a public policy initiative in which we will look to work with nonprofits, foundations, neighborhood and state partners that are working on policies related to kids,” said Campbell. “We will also be looking for more volunteers to work in schools.”

Campbell said the agency also plans to funnel money into intervention efforts aimed at preschool, elementary, middle and high school students. He said their work leverages donor funds with local, state and national funding sources and is a community-wide collaboration that aligns Kent County’s efforts to impact academic achievement.

“We are looking to fund work that is effective on two levels – quality of academic interventions in the life of our child and quantity,” he said. “How can we serve the masses to reach more children.”

Kent ISD Superintendent Kevin Konarska, chair of the Education Vision Council created by United Way to assist in reaching its goal, said educators realize they cannot tackle the problem alone. He said United Way has worked closely with the schools, aligning its programs and resources to remove barriers that can keep kids from reaching their potential.

“I believe that if we work as one community together we will have far better success reducing the dropout rate,” said Konarska, who said the issues that lead to a student dropping out often extends far beyond the school building. “This is an important issue to all of us.”

The Education Vision Council, a cross-section of community leaders who have been charged with charting our course in this effort.

Besides the Council, United Way has joined Kent County’s Collective Impact Committee – a consortium of local social service agencies working to achieve coordinated impact – to help with its goal. The agency is aligning work with the committee’s agenda to increase the number of high school graduates who secure a secondary certificate through
college or a technical training program.

United Way's pilot program, the Michigan Reading Corps, is modeled after the successful Minnesota Reading Corps program and targets students in kindergarten through third grade.The Michigan Community Service Commission wants to replicate the program in Michigan and is partnering with the agency, committing to add more Americorps workers to the program over the next three years, beginning with 50 next year. There are currently 25 working with United Way projects, including the pilot.

"We are already seeing kids grow," said Megan Jones, instruction specialist at Godwin's West Elementary, coaching the three AmeriCorps workers assigned to approximately 15 students each. "The 20 minutes a day is very focused. Assessments and interventions are scripted."

Riley, an AmeriCorps tutor with a bachelors in English, said the students look forward to their special one-on-one time. She said "a lot" gets done every day in 20 minutes to improve phonics and fluency skills.

The Schools of Hope program has in-school and after-school tutoring literacy programs and family literacy classes. The program is in 15 school buildings and 20 after-school sites in Grand Rapids. Grand Rapids Superintendent Teresa Neal has made reducing the district's nearly 20 percent dropout rate a priority in her restructuring plan.

In July, Gov. Rick Snyder recognized the programs success in raising literacy rates with his Outstanding National Service Program award.

“We’ve identified many of the causes of dropping out, and are now proposing solutions based on our research into local and national best practices,” said Campbell, who is also a member of the Michigan Community Service Commission.

Email: mscott2@mlive.com and follow her on Facebook and Twitter @Twitter.com/GRPScotty.